Rafting Terms Dictionary

Rafting Terms

Bow - The front of the boat

Carabiner - A clip, used to secure items into the boat, and to construct safety and rescue systems

Cataraft - An inflatable boat with two pontoons

CFS - Cubic Feet per Second

Current - Moving water

Day Bag - see Dry Bag

Dry Bag - A bag for keeping gear in on the river, to help keep things dry (but probably not 100%)

Dry Suit - A suit designed to keep all water out, under which any amount of laye red clothing can be worn

Duckie - A one or two person inflatable boat, usually paddled with double bladed paddles

Eddie Fence - see Eddie Line

Eddie Line - Where the water flowing upstream passes the water flowing downstream.

Eddie - Water flowing upstream behind a rock or other obstacle. Eddies often provide a safe place to get out of the current

Flow - The amount of water passing a point in the river, measured in CFS

Funyak - see Duckie

Gradient - The "steepness" of a river, measured in feet of elevation loss per mile of river

Haystack - A wave in a river formed by obstacles on the river bottom, where the wave stands still relative to the bank.

High Water - River flow above an expected average. Makes the currents faster. So me rapids get easier, others become more difficult

Hole - Where water flowing over a rock or other obstacle flows down, then back o nto itself in an eruption of whitewater

Hoopi - Tubular webbing used for multiple purposes in rigging and preparing boats

Hydraulic - see Hole

Inflatable Kayak - see Duckie

Laterals - A wave or hole peeling off an obstacle at an angle.

Life Jacket - A personal floatation device, coast guard approved, and worn like a vest

Low Water - Flows below an expected average. More rocks and obstacles may show, rapids become more technical

Oar - A long blade, attached to the boat by an oarlock on thole pin, and used to row

Oar Rig - A boat rigged with oars, so one person sitting in the center of the boat can row

Paddle - A paddle held in the hands, not attached to the boat, used to paddle. Can be single-bladed (for rafting and canoeing) or double-bladed (for kayaking, solo cats, inflatable kayaks)

Paddle Assist - see Stern Rig

Paddle Boat - A raft with a crew of paddlers and a guide

Pool-Drop - A type of river in which rapids are separated by calmer pools of water, sometimes more forgiving than continuous gradient rivers

Put-In - River access where a trip begins

Rapid - Where there's whitewater! Water flowing through a shallower, constricted, or steeper section forms a rapid

River Left - The left side of the river when facing downstream

River Rating - A measure of the difficulty of a rapid or a river

River Right - The right side of the river when facing downstream

Run - A section of river that can be boated

Seive - see Strainer

Solo Cat - A one-person cataraft paddled with a double-bladed paddle

Splashyak - see Duckie

Standing Wave - see Haystack

Stern Rig - An oar/paddle boat, in which the guide has oars and frame in the stern, and thecrew, sitting forward, has paddles. Ofen used on high water

Stern - The rear of the boat

Strainer - An opening or openings where water can flow through, but a solid object such as a person or boat cannot. Usually formed by trees on the banks, or by rocks on top of one another with water flowing through them. One of the most dangerous river features.

Take-Out - River access where a trip ends

Wet Suit - A neoprene rubber suit which allows a small amount of water in, to help retain body heat

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With courtesy to our friends at Whitewater Voyages - California's most popular rafting outfitter.